Remember the Name
by RosieStars
Summary: Melody Carter is the great-granddaughter of Peggy Carter. After her father was killed when she was six, S.H.I.E.L.D. came into her life to protect her. Ever since, she's been determined to follow her parents footsteps, but no one can see past her young age. When Nick Fury chooses her for the Avengers Initiative, she sees it as her opportunity to prove herself.
1. Chapter 1

The sound of the door being pounded against was enough to jolt Melody from her sleep. Clutching her doll tightly to her chest, she scurried downstairs to see her dad pushing against the door, worry growing as he saw his daughter standing before him. Fear was present on her face, clutching her doll even tighter if that were possible.

"Chto proiskhodit, Papa?" she asked in Russian, crying out when the door nearly gave way if her dad hadn't held it in place. _What's going on, Papa?_

"Melodiya, idti vverkh po lestnitse spryatat'sya!" he replied. _Melody, go hide upstairs!_ Another bang against the door sounded when he shouted, "Teper'!" _Now!_

Fear grabbing hold, the six-year-old ran upstairs, nearly dropping her doll on the steps as she tripped on her way up. She went into her room, opened the door to her closet, crawled into a cramped space in the corner, and hid there, huddling herself and her doll close to each other. Quietly, she hummed to herself to keep calm, barely able to keep quiet with each bang that resounded through the house. Why hasn't anyone noticed the noise? Melody couldn't help but wonder.

Finally, the banging stopped, and then a loud gunshot was heard. Melody cried out, and clamped her hands over her ears, tears falling down her cheeks. Silence followed. A few minutes later, she heard footsteps rushing toward the closet door. The door opened to reveal her father, his brown hair nearly black in the darkness. His brown eyes softened as he reached out to Melody and wiped away one of her tears.

"Milaya," he said softly, "eto vse budet khorosho. Vy sobirayetes' byt' v poryadke, ne volnuytes'."

After a few moments, Melody nodded. The banging started again suddenly. Her father smiled, and pointed toward her heart. "Yesli ya ne vernus', pomnyu, ya vsegda budu zdes'." He always said that if something dangerous was about to happen, Melody knew that by now. But what if he didn't come back? What then? She had no one else. She would be all alone.

Just before he left, she grabbed his hand tightly. "Ne ostav' menya v pokoye, pozhaluysta, Papa," she pleaded softly.

"Vy nikogda ne budete odni, Melodiya, pomnite. Ya vsegda budu s vami nezavisimo ot togo, chto," he responded, pulling her into a tight embrace, and kissing the top of her head. "Krepites', moya malen'kaya Melodiya. Vsegda byt' khrabrym."

Melody nodded, and then her father gave her another forehead kiss. The banging downstairs increased. With that, her father closed the door to her closet, and ran out the room.

Melody didn't remember how long she waited there, huddled into a ball in her closet. More gunshots were heard as the door downstairs finally slammed open. She rocked back and forth, humming to herself, clutching her doll to her chest, anything to block out the noises. She kept her mind focused on waiting for her father to come back upstairs, to come into her room, and tell her everything was fine, and that they had to move again, like the last time this had happened two years ago.

He never came back.

A long time after the noise finally stopped, and it seemed the intruders had left the house. Holding her doll in her arm, Melody cautiously made her way downstairs. Nothing seemed wrong at first, other than a few things being tossed around as if there were a struggle. Then her heart seemed to have stopped at the sight in front of the living room.

Her father's dead body laid there, blood pooling at the front of his shirt. His eyes, now void of the life that had sparked in them before, stared upward at the ceiling without seeing. Falling to her knees, Melody crawled over to him, placing her hands on his chest, hoping that he was only sleeping.

Once, twice, she softly nudged him. "Papa? Papa?" she said softly. The tears rolled down her face when he didn't stir. "Papa!" she cried, choking back sobs as she realized he wasn't going to wake up, he was never going to wake up ever again.

She broke down, hugging her doll close. What was only thirty minutes felt like hours until the door opened again, and Melody raised her gaze, her eyes red and puffy from crying, to see a man in a suit. "Who are you?" she asked in what little English she knew, her voice small.

"My name is Phil Coulson," he smiled down at her. "Where's your dad?"

At his words, Melody began crying anew. From that alone, Phil had his answer. His heart filled with sorrow, not just at the death of his friend but at the sorrow of his six-year-old daughter. "Your father was a good friend of mine," he said softly, even though he felt his heart breaking at her tear-stained face. "Come on, we'll take care of you. They'll come back for your dad later."

He held out his hand to her, and Melody hesitated a second before taking it. Before she left out the door, she glanced back at her dad's body, then allowed Phil to lead her away.

* * *

Melody silently cried, standing next to her father's open casket. She fingered the rose quartz pendant around her neck as with her other hand, she held her father's hand in her small one and said something so quiet that no one else heard. After a few more moments, she stepped away, and watched as they closed the casket, and lowered him into the home they'd dug to place his body in.

Melody took a rose from the nearby wreath of flowers, and dropped it in the hole before Phil grabbed her hand and gently pulled her away. Over the past few days, he'd told her all about her father's dangerous line of work as a S.H.I.E.L.D agent, and that explained to her everything. Now, she was under S.H.I.E.L.D's protection, simply because Director Fury was also a friend of her father. In a few days, he would ship her off to S.H.I.E.L.D academy to train as a an agent. Melody had actually asked to become one, just like her dad.

That was what worried Phil the most. She was setting herself up for a dangerous life. But this was what she wanted, and maybe in her mind, this made her feel closer to her dad now that he was gone, so he let her be. But if she got hurt...

Melody sighed, and stayed behind, standing beside her father's grave an hour after everyone else had gone home until she was escorted to a car waiting for the two. She glanced outside the window one last time as she got inside, then switched her gaze to the necklace around her neck, raising it to her eye. Her last gift from her dad, the last one she'd ever get. That was when she remembered his last words, "Be brave, my little Melody. Always be brave."

She would be brave. She didn't care what anyone else said, she would be a S.H.I.E.L.D agent like her father, and just as good, if not better, than her mother. And nothing would change her mind.

* * *

Translations: (I got these from google translate so sorry if I got some things wrong. The first two sentences are basically already translated so here we go)  
1) Sweetie, it's all going to be alright. You're going to be okay, don't worry.  
2) If I don't come back, remember I'll always be here.  
3) Don't leave me alone, please, Papa.  
4) You'll never be alone, Melody, remember. I will always be with you no matter what.  
5) Be brave, my little Melody. Always be brave.


	2. Chapter 2

"You need to slow down a little," Phil said. "People like S.H.I.E.L.D don't recruit people so young."

At his words, Melody whirled around from facing her punching bag, anger flashing in her eyes briefly. "I am not too young!" she exclaimed indignantly, a light Russian accent on her tongue. "I'm thirteen, and I'm actually better than most people older than me if you haven't noticed."

"Don't get too cocky," he scolded lightly. "And thirteen is way too young to put your life on the line on these type of missions."

"Intruders broke into my home and murdered my dad, and nearly murdered me if he hadn't stopped them in time," she said quietly, her red hair falling over her face before she pinned it back into her ponytail. She turned back around, and began pounding the punching bag again. "I wasn't too young for that."

"You're not going to bring him back by getting yourself killed trying to finish what he started," Phil shot back with a raised eyebrow. "Although, you guys are made of tough stuff. Just slow down a little and try not to get banged up too badly. If I find out you've gotten yourself killed, I will drag you from your grave, bring you back to life, and kill you again."

Melody's bell-like laughter rang throughout the room as she turned around. A contagious, bright smile was plastered on her face that made her emerald eyes light up. "You wouldn't, you'd miss me too much," she laughed.

"I will, trust me," he said, though unable to keep the smile off his face. His phone rang, and he regained his serious composure. "Break. Go practice your fencing or knife throwing. Your choice."

He answered, and put the phone to his ear. Melody smiled as she took a drink from her water bottle, and grabbed her duffel bag nearby. She took out two fencing swords. Good grip, light weight. With a small grin, she traced the blade with her finger, remembering how Phil got them for her birthday when she was ten after begging him for three months. Sharp, just as she liked them. Every morning, she made sure to sharpen them so sharp that when her friend Leo accidentally touched the tip once, his finger started bleeding instantly.

Taking a deep breath, she swiped one sword at the dummy in front of her before whirling around, and tossing the other at a target on the opposite side of the room. It spun across the room, and landed dead center in the middle, sticking out while the dummy split in half, and the top half slid off the bottom, tumbling onto the floor. She smiled, and internally cheered for herself, but kept it in since Phil was still in the room and she didn't want to seem unprofessional in front of him.

Melody sighed, tucked a stray curl behind her ear, and went to retrieve the sword, pulling it out of the target before repeating the process. By the time most of the dummies were destroyed, cut in half, and most of the targets had holes in them from where her swords pierced them, she heard Phil hiss into the phone, "What?! Fury, she's just a kid! Yes, I know she's the best student here but we all know she's not ready. She's too young." Despite herself, indignation filled Melody at his words as he paused for a minute. "Alright fine! But if she gets hurt..."

A minute later, he walked back into the room, stopping at Melody. She looked to him hopefully, her anger deflating. If it had to do with Director Fury, the news had to be good for her, right? "What happened?" she asked, pulling her sword out from yet another target.

Phil sighed, "Clint's been compromised."

"What?" Melody said, hope dissolving into worry and confusion. Clint had been a good friend of her father, and soon after he died, hers as well. "What happened?"

Another sigh. "They don't know yet, only that he goes by the name Loki. And he's not from here. We decided the Avengers initiative is back up, and we-and by we I mean Fury-wants you to go as backup with Natasha Romanoff to take the big guy." Melody's expression brightened considerably at the mention of going with her role model, though she attempted to hide it, one Phil could see through easily. Regaining her serious composure, she scoffed, twirling the sword in her right hand.

"That should be easy," she said with confidence. "Tony's not so hard."

Phil bit his lip. "Actually...I got the big guy, you two got the green guy."

Melody instantly stopped twirling the sword, and dropped both of them. The hulk. _The_ hulk, _Bruce_ _Banner_ , _the_ hulk. That was a challenge. At least it wasn't boring. She thought her first mission would end up being when she was eighteen at most, and a boring one, too at that. Get in, get the object needed, get out. Done. But the _hulk_? Internally, she squealed loudly in happiness and excitement, but externally kept a solemn face, or tried to at least.

All that pent up energy and excitement made Melody begin bouncing on the balls of her heels. It took only a moment for Phil to notice. He sent her an amused look. "It's fine, let it out," he said.

Instantly, as of the words were a trigger, Melody burst out so loud he wouldn't be surprised if the entire academy heard her, "Yes!" She wrapped her arms around Phil so tightly he felt she was choking him. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! You won't regret this, I promise! Let's go!" she said all at once before running out, breaking into a cartwheel right as she exited the room.

Yep, that was Melody, one big ball of energy at times, and such a chatterbox that if you let her keep going, she'd never stop. "She's going to eat them all alive," he deadpanned, shaking his head, almost pitying them.

* * *

Melody sighed, donning a brown wig over her red curls, making her appear like the girl she asked to help lure the hulk to the hut where Natasha was waiting. An old friend who owed her a favor, and it just so happens Melody needed it. Other than their skin tone, the girl's being tanned and Melody's being pale, with the same colored hair, Melody almost looked like she could be her older sister.

Nodding at her friend, Melody followed her as they ran through the streets, passing people and vehicles. When she poked Melody's arm to get her attention as she saw Bruce Banner through the bars, Melody quickly put on her best helpless face, appearing afraid and worried. The woman up front began talking to them, and Melody's friend talked back in the same tongue until Bruce caught sight of them at the door. After a moment of her friend telling Bruce the story they'd gone over to get his attention, he pointed to the sick people nearby, clearly asking if their parent was sick.

Melody nodded, and held out the money un her hand, even bringing fake tears to her eyes to seem more believable. "Yes," she said softly in English.

Running again through the streets, leading Bruce to the destination in mind. He put out a hand to stop them from getting run over, and as soon as the vehicle past, they ran to the hut. Once they reached the door, Melody stopped and nodded to her friend before giving her a hug, and whispering, "thanks" in her ear. The girl only nodded in acknowledgement so as not to give anything away, and ran inside.

She ran to the room, crawled into the window, and crawled out. She made a run for it once her feet touched the ground. Behind Melody, Bruce had the realization he'd been tricked, and scoffed, "Should've asked to be paid upfront."

Melody sighed, and took her wig off, shaking her hair out so her red locks tumbled down her shoulders. Sweeping her hair out of her eyes, she turned back to Bruce, one corner of her mouth quirking up.

Natasha walked out, pulling her shawl over her shoulders. "You know, for a man who's avoiding stress, you picked a hell of a place to settle," she said.

"Avoiding stress isn't the secret," he shot back.

"Then what is it, yoga?" she asked.

"You brought me to the edge of the city. Smart," he said. "I presume the whole place is surrounded."

"One," Melody spoke up, "she didn't bring you here, I did. And two, nope."

"Just the three of us," agreed Natasha.

"And your actress buddies, they're spies too? Do they usually start that young?" he asked curiously. He paused, and looked at Melody. "Come to think of it, you look awfully young."

"I'm thirteen," sighed Melody, her accent coming out thicker in her irritation. "And not all, just those like us."

"Who are you two?"

"Natasha Romanoff," Natasha replied.

Bruce rubbed his hands together, looking down at the floor. "You two here to kill me, Miss Romanoff, 'cause that's not going to work out."

"No, no, of course not. I'm here on behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D," she assured him.

"S.H.I.E.L.D," he repeated. "How'd they find me?"

"They never lost you actually," shrugged Melody. "They've been keeping other interested parties off your scent even."

"Why?"

"Nick Fury seems to trust you, and if he trusts you, so do I. In fact, I am a huge fan of your work, both as you and the other guy," she grinned, forgetting she was supposed to be serious and keep this business-like. "So's my friend Leo. When I told him I was coming here, he was 'green' with envy." When no one laughed at her little joke with her, she shrugged and waved it off. "Tough crowd. Either way, I feel bad to tell you this, but we kinda sorta need you to come in."

"What if I say no?"

"We'll persuade you."

"And what if the other guy says no?" he asked.

"You've been more than a year without an incident, and you don't seem like the kind of guy who would want to break that streak," Melody retorted sassily. "Now would you?

"Every time I get what I want." Natasha got her phone out, and found the picture of the cube.

"Doctor, we're facing a global catastrophe," she said.

He rolled his eyes. "Well those I try to avoid."

"That," continued Melody, hoisting herself to sit on the table as Natasha slid the phone across it to him, "is the Tesseract. It has the potential energy to wipe out the planet."

Bruce got out his glasses, and put them on, picking up the phone as Natasha took a seat. "What does Fury want me to do, swallow it?" he asked.

"That's the thing," Melody smiled. "He wants _you_ to find it, not the hulk. The Tesseract was taken from us, and it emits a gamma signature that's too faint for us to trace. We need someone who knows gamma."

"And no one knows gamma like you," Natasha said, leaning back in her chair. "If there was, that's were I'd be."

Bruce took off his glasses, and gave the girls a long hard look, noticing how much they looked so alike, but contrasted so much in personality. "So, Fury isn't after the monster?"

"Not that he's told us."

"And he tells us everything," Melody mumbled sarcastically under her breath, saying exactly what Bruce was thinking. She in turn recieved a dirty look from Natasha that had her turning her gaze down at the table.

"He needs you in on this," Natasha continued to persuade.

"He needs me in a cage."

"No one's gonna-"

"STOP LYING TO ME! " he yelled, slamming his hands on the table. Natasha immediately grabbed a gun she'd hid from under the table, and pointed it at him. Melody flinched, but made no move to draw out any weapons. She didn't feel afraid of him, knowing he did anything he could _not_ to hulk out. After a moment, he stood up straight, an apologetic look on his face. "I'm sorry, that was mean. I just wanted to see how you would react," he apologized, putting up his hands to show he meant no harm. "Why don't we do this the easy way. You put down the gun, and the other guy doesn't make a mess. Alright, Natasha."

Slowly, she lowered the gun, and Melody looked to him with a grin. "That was sneaky, manipulative, and, yeah, a little mean. I like you already."

"Stand down," Natasha whispered into the ear piece in her ear.

"Just the three of us, huh?" Bruce mocked. Melody raised an eyebrow.

"Come on, I think we both knew she was lying," pointed out Melody with a shrug. She tucked a stray strand behind her ear.

"Let's get going, shall we? I got a jet waiting for us," said Natasha. Once she left the room, Melody stuck out her hand to Bruce.

"I know this if supposed to be only professional but I've never been very good at following rules," she smiled. "So let's pretend I didn't deceit you into coming here against your will with someone who owed me a favor. Hi, I am a huge fan of your work, a little more of the hulk though so expect me to brag all about this to my friend Leo. I can't believe I'm actually here, and can't wait to work with you. Also, question my abilities as an agent because of my age, I will prove you wrong. I've heard it way too many times in my life." She said all this at once without stopping to catch her breath until she finished. Bruce raised an eyebrow.

"Well you're a chatty one," he said, taking her hand and shaking it. "Bruce Banner."

"Melody. Last name, well, I'll have to say my dad's instead of my mom's maiden name, though I'd love to use my mom's because my dad's is Carter," she rambled, earning an amused small smile from the scientist. "Melody Carter doesn't have that ring to it like Natasha Romanoff and Bruce Banner or-" She cut herself off once she realized her mistake. "Sorry, I might talk a lot but next time just tell me when to-"

Her sentence was cut off as Bruce clamped his hand over her mouth. "Does that work?" he asked. Melody nodded and shrugged in reply as if to say _Yeah, that works_.


	3. Chapter 3

To say the ride back to the Helicarrier was a little awkward was an understatement. Melody sat beside Bruce and several trained, armed assassins. No one spoke during the entire ride, increasing the awkwardness of the whole situation and Melody's anxiety. Not a sound to be heard or a disturbance in the air. Somehow that bothered her more than the tension so thick she could cut it with a knife. The painful quiet reminded her of something, but she couldn't remember what. The silence made her ears ring, her heart pound. It made her want to scream just to make a sound. The quiet alone could easily drive her insane.

Biting her lip, she took out the small necklace under her shirt, and turned the quartz around in her hand. Outside was utterly pitch black. Every time she tried to doze off, the plane jolted, and she didn't think it was a good idea to start a conversation with Bruce or Natasha. Bruce looked stressed by all the security, and Natasha was lost in thought, her lips pressed into a thin line, eyebrows furrowed. How Melody missed Clint in situations like this, but she had to learn to handle the pressure if she really wanted to be a good agent, and she did.

She took a deep breath, and took out a pair of white and pink headphones before slipping them on over her scarlet hair. In a small effort to drown out the silence, she plugged her headphones into her phone, and scrolled through her playlist. After a moment of contemplation, she clicked on 'Run the World (Girls)' by Beyonce. Melody hummed along with the tune, but then she noticed Bruce shift uncomfortably in his seat out of the corner of her eye. Almost instantly she stopped humming, trying to sit still for a few moments.

Once she'd first gotten onto the plane, which felt like hours ago, she'd changed out of her outfit and into one of her favorites. She had slipped into a white crop tank top under a white cropped jacket, a knee-length white skirt, white tights, and white boots with stiletto heels. She had swept her hair up in a high ponytail, and slung a white messenger bag across her chest.

After a while of listening to her music, Melody felt someone lift up one side of her headphones, uncovering her left ear. "Sorry. Um, we're about to land."

She looked up, and noticed Bruce looking apologetic as if she were about to lash out at any moment for disrupting her music. But if anything, she was thankful. "Thanks," she grinned, taking off her headphones so they rested around her neck. She looked across to Natasha. "How many do we have?"

"Coulson's got Tony. Fury's got Rogers. And we got Dr. Banner," she replied, her expression stoic.

A curious glint entered Melody's eyes as she leaned forward a bit. "Rogers? Steve Rogers? The Steve Rogers? The Capsicle himself?" she beamed, leaning further forward in her seat. Her hands gripped the edge subconsciously to keep herself balanced if the plane jerked yet again.

"Yep," said Natasha, popping the 'p'. "Coulson's with him right now."

At that, Melody snickered behind her hand before it turned into full-out laughter. "Out of all people," she giggled. "Bednyazhka! The Captain's certainly got a lot of signing to do!"

Natasha smiled in amusement. "Yes, I guess he does."

Before Melody could open her mouth again, the plane dipped downwards, and she pitched forward, almost tumbling off if not for her firm grip. "Phew, that was close," she mumbled to herself, sitting back up. She clung onto the sides of the ship as Bruce muttered a silent prayer, and Natasha laughed at both their reactions.

"That wouldn't have happened if you had been sitting properly," Natasha chastised lightly. Melody snorted and raised an eyebrow.

"Gee, I didn't know my mother was on this trip," she said sarcastically, but there was a hint of bitterness behind it. No one seemed to pick up on it. And if they did, no one mentioned it, which Melody couldn't help but be glad for. What was her business was her business. Not theirs. And they could never know.

It wasn't as if her mother would actually care where she was right now. She wouldn't care that her daughter was following the dangerous path her father had set on before. Her mother barely even remembered her daughter existed, and therefore couldn't care less about her. But what did that matter now? The past deserves to stay in the past. Especially when there was nothing she could do about it.

She peeked out the window to watch the jet land on a ship large enough to have an entire fleet of jets land on it simultaneously. Briefly, Melody wondered how many other people were on it as the doors of the jet opened for them to step outside. She walked out after Natasha and Bruce, staring at everything with amazed eyes. There were agents going on a run, agents in suits walking about with quick steps, and there were several jets taking off and landing. It was her first time actually here, and everything just astounded her; she couldn't begin to imagine how the Captain probably found all this since he hadn't even heard about computers a few weeks ago.

Melody scanned the place for another jet until it came into view, landing near her. Taking a deep breath to ready herself, she headed down the long runway alongside Natasha to the people stepping out the jet. Melody raised her fingers to her lips, and whistled loudly to get Phil's attention. It worked, and his head turned to the young redhead, who waved with a grin on her face. But rather than acknowledge her, his attention was more on Natasha in front of her.

"Agent Romanoff," he said. Melody actually nearly stopped in her tracks, but then she pursed her lips, and she continued on, crossing her arms. Focus.

From beside him, Steve Rogers landed his gaze on the two, but then his gaze centered on the thirteen-year-old, his brow furrowing in confusion. "This is Captain Rogers. And this-" he gestured to Melody after noticing the long, hard glare she was sending his way- "is Miss Melody Carter, Captain."

"Pleasure to meet you, sir!" she grinned, holding out her hand. He eyed her up and down for a minute before shaking her hand. Her grip was surprisingly firm.

"Carter, huh?" Steve asked, a hint of curiosity in his eyes. He nodded his head to Natasha. "Ma'am," he greeted.

"Hi," said Natasha simply. Her eyes diverted to Phil. "They need you on the bridge."

"See you there," said Phil as he walked past all three.

"It was quite the buzz, finding you in the ice," Natasha commented as they started to walk away from the jet, Melody holding her messenger bag close to her. "Thought Coulson was gonna swoon."

"I'll say," chuckled Melody, startling Steve. She rolled his eyes, guessing he'd actually forgotten she was there. "Last time I saw him that excited was when I let him drag me to that Captain America convention." With a broad grin, she turned to him. "Did he ask you to sign his Captain America trading cards yet?" At that, Steve stared at her, bewildered

"Trading cards?" he asked in a slightly amused tone.

"They're vintage and he's very proud," the redhead added absentmindedly, her attention centered on the inside of her bag as she searched through it.

"I was going to say that," Natasha mumbled. Melody snorted, but otherwise, Natasha's words didn't bring her at ease, which she hated. All her life, being around so many people made her feel intimidated. Being in crowds this huge made her anxiety spike up though she hid it easily with distractions. Like talking, or listening to music, or basically anything to keep her mind off it all. Maybe because she continuously thought every person glancing her way was judging or criticizing her in their head, or maybe because at the Academy, she didn't exactly go with the kindest of people and their constant comments had messed with her self-esteem. Or perhaps...it was the demon-eyed man who haunted her dreams, and the ever-present reminder he could be anywhere, always watching no matter where she went.

Finally, she fished out a stick of bubblegum, and placed it in her mouth. She chewed feverishly at it in an effort to calm her nerves. Natasha stopped moving when she found Bruce, and nodded towards him, who was still standing by the jet, looking confused, and kept turning around on the spot.

"Dr. Banner," Steve called, making the scientist look at him and make his way to them. Steve stepped up, and while Natasha stayed behind, Melody went up so she was right beside Steve.

"Oh, yeah, hi," he said, shaking Steve's hand. "They told me you'd be coming."

"Word is you can find the cube," said Steve, letting go of the scientist's hand. Though it would've been an awkward atmosphere, especially since Bruce became the Hulk because of Steve in a way, Steve waved it off with a warm smile.

"Is that the only word on me?" asked Bruce, sparing a glance at Melody.

"Only word I care about," he reassured Bruce, earning a small smile from him.

"It must be strange for you, all of this," Bruce commented, referring to the Helicarrier. Steve looked around.

"Actually," admitted Steve, his gaze landing on a pair of trainees jogging with their trainer, "this is kind of familiar."

Melody stopped paying attention to the conversation as she discreetly eavesdropped on Natasha while she spoke into her earpiece, as well as what was being said on the other side.

"Alrighty, gentleman," she chimed in suddenly, "you may want to step inside in a minute." At those words, Natasha turned her head to the teenager in shock.

"How did you-"

"I'm a good listener," was all she said with a cheeky smile. "So, anyway, you might want to step inside because its about to get a little hard to breathe, people." Quickly, Melody jogged over to the edge of the ship, wanting to see it for herself. The clanking sound of metal filled the air while men barked orders all over to agents to secure the deck. When the water beside the boat started to move, her face lit up.

"Is this a submarine?" Steve asked in disbelief as he and Bruce looked around with wide eyes, walking to stand next to her.

Bruce scoffed. "Really? They want me in a submerged, pressurized metal container?" The men peered over the edge, missing the amused glance Natasha exchanged with Melody. Melody shrugged and winked. She turned her gaze back below.

"You guys couldn't be farther off," she grinned, pointing downwards towards the water's surface where now two huge and round propellers had appeared, slowly starting to work, causing water to splash up towards the three of them.

When the "ship" started to rise from the water, the ground beneath their feet shook, and Melody instinctively gripped the sleeve of Natasha's leather jacket as she almost lost her footing for a moment.

Bruce commented, half amused, half horrified, "Oh, no, this is much worse." Wind began to blow against their faces, causing them to back away from the edge.

"Shall we go inside then?" offered Natasha, a smirk playing on her lips, before she turned around, walking towards the other side of the landing area.

"A Helicarrier!" Melody exclaimed excitedly, her feet barely able to keep up with Natasha's long strides as the three of them followed her. "Phil used to tell me about these!"

"I didn't know S.H.I.E.L.D. had these kinds of things," Steve muttered.

"Well, the first thing you should learn about S.H.I.E.L.D. is that there's a lot you don't know about it," said Melody matter-of-factly. "No one really knows all of their secrets." After a while, she finally realized her fingers beginning to hurt in her left hand, and looked down to see them still grasping Natasha's jacket sleeve tightly. The instant she noticed this, she let go. Although Natasha didn't seem to have either noticed or didn't mind, Melody bit her lip and chewed harder at the gum in her mouth.

* * *

At some point, Melody had wandered away from the group, and found where she'd be sleeping until this was over. The room she had for the time she'd be staying on the Helicarrier was nothing special. More than likely, it looked like the rest of the rooms with a simple bed in the corner, a desk in the front, facing the door, and a wardrobe. There was a pad placed on the desk and a pen with some paper sitting next to it. Apart from the lamp on the wall and on her bedside table, there were no other decorations. Not even a window, though it was easy to see why; her room was placed on one of the bottom levels, which meant it was right beneath the propellers, and with a window, it'd be hard to isolate the noise. Not that Melody would mind it.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the ballerina doll propped up on the headboard. Attached was a small white card. Without even reading it, Melody stormed over to the bed, ripped the card off, and tossed it in the garbage. Then tossed the doll in without looking at it. If she did, it would make her lose her nerve. Letting out a frustrated sigh, she fell back onto the bed, her ponytail spreading out beneath her head like a red fan.

"That son of a bitch is never going to leave me alone, is he?" she asked herself quietly. She already knew the answer to that. With everything going on, she actually almost forgot what today is. That is until that bastard reminded her. On this exact day. Every. Single. Year.

Of course he'd never leave her alone. She had accepted it by now. After all, he had been doing it for seven years now. She hadn't told Phil, or Fury or Maria, or anyone really. It was safer that way, and everyone hovered over her enough without something else to worry about.

After a minute, she got up and unpacked her stuff, tossing her messenger bag into the wardrobe along with the extra clothes she'd pack. She left her swords in their sheaths, and carefully placed them on the bed. Everyone wondered why she stuck to swords, but the truth was she didn't quite like guns, and daggers were out of the question, though she never told anyone why. With one last look at the mirror, she left the room, and made her way to the bridge quickly, only asking for directions once, which she happened to be proud of.

"Miss Carter," greeted Fury when she entered the bridge, smiling at her amazed look as she took everything in. The bridge was amazingly high tech like the rest of the Helicarrier, apart from her room, and she couldn't help looking around at it all with wide eyes.

"Hey, Un-Director Fury," Melody beamed, catching herself just in time.

"How you feeling?" he whispered to her, earning a confused look from her. "I know this is emotionally complex for you."

At that, Melody snorted and chuckled quietly. "You know I can't afford to let this become emotionally complex, Uncle Nick." He may not actually be her uncle, but it'd become habit calling him that since she was six. But now she had to be professional. No emotions involved, or at least not here.

Fury furrowed his brow, staring at her with his eye for a long time before he simply nodded. "You can back out anytime you want," he said quietly. "Just know that."

"I won't back out," she replied firmly, jutting her chin out in defiance. "Carters don't quit, Director Fury. I thought you knew that," she smirked before walking away. She noticed two familiar faces, and walked over to them.

"...I mean if it's not too much trouble," said Phil, mirroring Steve's posture with his arms crossed over his chest as he looked over the working agents.

"No, no, it's fine," assured Steve, glancing at Melody and frowning slightly before he returned his gaze towards Phil. Noticing his reaction upon seeing her, Melody narrowed her eyes, and took out another piece of bubblegum to keep calm and quiet.

Phil continued on, making Melody smile softly as she stood behind both men, her hands clasped behind her back. "It's a vintage set. Took me a couple of years to collect them all. Near mint. Slight miscol-"

"Sir, we got a hit!" called out agent Sitwell from close by as he turned to Fury, causing Phil, Rogers, and Melody to turn and look at him. "67 percent match. Wait, cross match, 79 percent."

Phil walked over to the agent, asking, "Location?"

"Stuttgart, Germany," replied Sitwell. "28th Königstrasse. He's not exactly hiding."

"Captain, Miss," said Fury, catching the Captain's and Melody's attention. "You're up."

Though her heart started beating quicker now that their mission was actually beginning, Melody nodded. They had to stop this before something horrible happened, which was bound to. Something that confused her to no end was why someone would believe freedom was when freedom was no longer there, a belief that basically started this whole mess.

"On it." She was already halfway down the corridor to her room, walking at swift pace, before the Captain caught up to her.

"You alright?" he asked.

"Yes, why?" she demanded, her accent thicker with irritation, though her tone polite. Overly so.

"Whatever Fury told you had you worried," he said as she got to her door.

"It wasn't anything for you to worry about," she retorted, still sounding a bit too polite and formal, praying he'd just let it go. After all, he had his own problems to worry about, all much worse than hers, and she didn't want him to think she was some sniveling little girl who shouldn't be here on the Helicarrier. She could already see his doubt of her in his eyes. It made her blood boil. Although it was sweet of him to ask, she couldn't help but feel a hint of resentment towards him.

"Nervous?"

She didn't even glance back at him, her formal tone not breaking once. "No, Captain, why on earth would I be nervous? It's not like the whole world might possibly depend on us not messing this up."


	4. Chapter 4

"How long until we reach Stuttgart?" Captain America asked as he boarded the plane, suit on and shield in hand.

Melody's lifted her head to watch him with curious eyes. Of course, she'd seen pictures of Captain America in his suit, but it was different seeing it in real life. It felt more heroic and more real and impressive, not to mention Phil would probably faint at the sight. It reminded her of the one from WWII. The only difference was that the colours were brighter and more tight-fitting, but the shield was still the same.

Still, Melody found herself fighting off a burst of giggles at how uncomfortably tight it looked.

"About six hours at maximum speed. We'll arrive just after sunset," replied Natasha as she closed the doors behind him and ignited the jet's engines. The Captain nodded his head and placed his shield next to him while Melody sat on the opposite side. She barely managed to keep from laughing and bit her lip.

After a while, he finally noticed and pointed a finger at her.

"Not a word, Miss," he said.

"Sorry, it's just, you look like..." She made a gesture of trying to fit something large into something small. "Compressed Cap." Bursting out into a tiny fit of giggles, it was a few seconds before she could compose herself. "Sorry, sorry, I'm good." She took out her pair of headphones again, and placed them over her ears. She put on 'Centuries' by Fall Out Boy while Natasha took them off and let the jet go up to its maximum speed.

She was humming along with the song when her gaze dropped to the Captain who was looking down at the floor with an unreadable expression on his face. She bit her lip, and slipped off her headphones so they rested around her neck.

"Hey, Spangles," Melody called out, catching his attention. "You okay?"

"Yeah, of course," he muttered with a small smile. A small, unconvincing smile.

She simply nodded with an eyebrow raised. Yep, he was lying, and more than likely it had something to do with the fact that this was the 21st century rather than his own time. "Yeah, well, I'm not buying that, but nice try," replied Melody, smiling in amusement as she leaned forward in her seat. "I love flying, but I get why you don't. Especially when it's going this fast."

"How fast?" he asked.

"I'm not sure, but I think over 2,200 mph," she shrugged, the immediate puzzled look on the Captain's face making her smile grow to a grin. "And guess what? That's _just_ when they don't push the engines."

"Huh," he said. "Back in my day, we called that sci-fi."

"Well, a lot of things in our world now used to be sci-fi along with a lot of other things we never thought would be possible," she grinned softly, nodding since he confirmed what she thought was went in the first place. Her grin faded as she thought about it. "And there's a lot of stuff that's sci-fi today that we are also trying to make real. But a lot of stuff have stayed the same no matter how much time has passed, none good. That's just the way the world works..."

"Yeah," he sighed, once again looking down at the floor, leaning his elbows on his knees. He didn't notice the faraway look in Melody's eyes.

It faded and she shook her head to clear it. Her grin returned. "But we gotta at least try, right?" She reached forward to place her hand on his arm. "You'll get used to it, Spangles. The world goes on with or without us."

He sighed quietly. "I don't know... I reckon I don't have a choice." Melody's heart sank a bit at his words.

She frowned. "Come on, Spangles, look a bit on the bright side. A few of my friends have relatives who don't even have Wi-Fi or cable," snorted Melody, making him look at her. "Trust me when I say you've passed them in understanding this world."

At that, Steve smiled at her, grateful for her words, although she was pretty sure they didn't mean anything to him. To be honest, Melody wasn't positive he even knew what Wi-Fi was.

"Thanks. I didn't think-" Before he could finish, Melody cut him off in that same polite yet agitated tone from their last conversation.

"A little girl could understand?" Melody said. "But I can understand better than you think. I'm young, not stupid."

"That's not what I mean," he sighed, leaning back so he sat up straight again. "But since you now know about my problem...how about you tell me the truth about your problem?"

She stared right back, not breaking eye contact. Though she wish she didn't, she knew what he meant. And she needed to divert his attention again. Yes, she might've had a tiny problem, but it was _her_ problem. Hers. Not Steve's, or anyone's, but hers. Besides, he was down enough already. She didn't want to be a burden on him.

"I'm sorry, but I don't need to worry you with my problems," she chuckled, hiding her true emotions behind a laughing mask. "You got enough to worry about without me adding onto that. I can deal with it."

"You're sure you're okay?" asked Steve, brows furrowing in concern.

Melody scoffed with a small grin. "Look, you're the Star-spangled man with a plan. I'm just someone barely making it through. I have a lot of problems, but _I_ deal with them, not someone else."

"Well, to be frank, sometimes you need a bit of help when you're going through hard times."

"And to be frank, I don't do pity, and I'd rather listen to other's problems than tell mine," retorted Melody, subconsciously reaching into her pocket for another piece of gum to chew in her anxiety. Once she had it out in her hand, she unwrapped it and stuck into her mouth before chewing feverishly at it. Though she tried to look serious, it ended up looking adorable.

"So what do you do?" he chuckled.

"Train my butt off and enjoy life the best I can," she shrugged. "You taught me a few things, two of them being: to fight for what's right, and that life can always come to a screeching halt at any moment."

He paused a moment. "Thanks?"

She gave him an unimpressed look. "Hey, at least you have another chance. When you hit rock bottom, only way left to go is up. So...other than the world possibly ending, what's the worse that can happen?" she pointed out with a small, reassuring smile. Although that last sentence was anything but reassuring.

* * *

Six hours later, Natasha slowed down the speed of the jet as they reached their destination. Melody's bubblegum was chewed to a bit, and she had to take a deep breath to calm herself before preparing for a fight. Training was fun and all, but being out here in the real world, facing the real thing was like finally seeing what you were made of. To her, this was more to see whether or not she actually had what it took.

Her hands shaking just the slightest, Melody secured the holsters of her swords to a utility belt around her waist so it wouldn't fall off during battle. She had this. She was Melody Carter, great-granddaughter of Peggy Carter, and she refused to back down so easily.

She watched Steve grab his shield and place it onto his right arm. He looked so confident and ready. Meanwhile, she couldn't stop chewing on her gum and fidgeting.

"You guys ready?" asked Natasha, earning nods from both. "Good."

Steve furrowed his brow-although it was hard to see because of his mask-as the doors silently opened, the jet still hovering in the air. They both looked out, seeing the large crowd of people that had been forced down on their knees by multiple Lokis. The only explanation for that was magic, which intrigued Melody more than anything.

She thought she heard Steve say something, but she couldn't hear over her own pounding heart. She kept her guard up, masking her fear, yet it was there. Steve leaped out of the jet, landing in front of an old man Loki had been about to shoot with the staff in his hand. He threw his shield up, protecting both himself and the old man.

A ball of blue energy deflected from the shield and hit Loki, causing him to fall to his knees. The crowd of people stood and ran as the multiple other Lokis disappeared into thin air. Melody saw her chance to jump coming, and she gripped the rose quartz around her neck tightly, tucking a strand of red hair behind her ear.

"Let me be brave," she whispered to herself, a stone determination filling her eyes, remembering her father's words. Then she jumped, tucking her ankles beneath her to soften the landing when she hit ground. She landed beside Steve and drew one of her swords as she watched Loki stand up slowly. She had no idea how to fight a god, but she was sure she'd try the best she could.

"You know, the last time I was in Germany and saw a man standing above everybody else, we ended up disagreeing," said Steve, approaching Loki slowly.

"The soldier and the little girl," Loki said. Melody's eyes narrowed when he mentioned her as she came out from behind Steve. "The assassin's spawn and the man out of time." Her eyes widened the slightest. How did he know that?

"I'm not the one who's out of time," Steve retorted.

Natasha flew jet closer to the ground from above, aiming the jet's weapons at the trickster.

"Loki, drop the weapon and stand down," echoed her voice from the jet. Instead, Loki almost immediately shot a ball of blue energy at the jet with his staff. Natasha managed to dodge it just in time to Melody's relief.

Steve tossed his shield against Loki's head, causing him to stagger backwards while Steve caught his shield and ran towards Loki. Melody followed, but paused when she caught Steve punch Loki. The trickster god didn't even react to the fact that Steve had just punched him in the jaw, and it made her wonder if there was anything to do that would hurt him. Just as she thought that, Loki punched Steve's shield, making him stagger backwards from the force. Before he could react, Loki punched him again, this time in the stomach, sending him flying back away from him.

Then Melody attacked, using part of what she'd learn during the past seven years to dodge, jump and slice Loki's arms with her swords, though she didn't do much damage. She didn't intend to. She only meant to try and subdue, not harm, especially since she knew it was no match between the two. At some point, he started to foresee what she'd do next, and when she went to dodge another punch, he grabbed her lower arm. He twisted her arm until she lost her grip on her sword, and she gritted her teeth in pain. Ignore the pain, she tried to remind herself. Ignore the pain.

The soft clank her sword made when it hit the ground caught Steve's attention. He groaned at the pain in his stomach, but Melody's focus was elsewhere. Loki's breath touched her face as she stared with wide, fearful eyes, noting that he was taller than even Steve.

"You shouldn't be fighting a grownups' war, little one," he hissed, tightening his grip more with each word. Melody gritted her teeth.

Yet he was surprised when she then gave him a small smile in return. "You have no idea how many times I've heard that one," she chuckled. Then brought her knee up as hard as she could into his stomach. His grip loosened slightly on her arm, and she used her free hand to grab the remaining sword on her belt and slice Loki's left cheek. A long cut now ran down that side of his face.

Her victory was short-lived, though, as Loki used his foot to kick her away from him. She landed on the ground, hitting her head against the cement. She heard something crack and her vision blurred. The world around her started to spin. Sounds were drowned out by the loud ringing in her ears. Everything happened so fast that the next thing her consciousness caught was the familiar sound of Iron Man's suit landing nearby. When did he get here? she thought as she pushed herself up from her position on the ground to watch the events taking place.

No one even noticed her. Sadly, that wasn't anything new. Like she'd said before, the world moved on with or without her. Unfortunately it was almost always without.

"Make a move, Reindeer Games," said Tony Stark. Loki was on the ground, and both Iron Man and Captain America stood above him. Tony pointed his Iron Man repulsors at the trickster who slowly raised his hands above his head.

Using all her strength to not throw up her last meal due to the spinning world around her, Melody stood up and grabbed her swords from the floor. She joined the two heroes standing in front of the bad guy. The adrenaline slowly began to leave her body, the pain she felt from her fall growing more and more with each second passing. She swayed the slightest before regaining her footing. She tried to ignore the pain, hiding it behind a mask she'd perfected last year that made everyone assume nothing was wrong.

"Good move," Tony said, watching Loki, whose hands were sill in the air. "Captain," he greeted Steve curtly.

"Stark," shot back Steve.

"Tin Man," Melody beamed, making a peace sign at him with two fingers. "Didn't think I'd see you again this soon."

The mask of Tony's helmet opened up, revealing his face. "Neither did I, Sparkles."

"You two know each other?" asked Steve, glancing between the two, an amused glint in his eyes.

"Yup," Melody grinned. "Last year. Fury was going to meet him so I decided to tag along."

"Coulson told me this was your first mission," Steve recalled.

"Yeah, but since when did those two ever stop me from going behind their backs?" snorted Melody, rolling her eyes.

Tony seemed in thought for a moment before saying, "True. Now, let's get this one inside the jet." On cue, Natasha landed the jet behind them skillfully.

She walked out with handcuffs in her hands, which, hopefully, were strong enough to hold the god of mischief before attaching them to his hands. Tony grabbed him by the arm and lead him inside the jet. All the adrenaline was now completely gone from Melody's body, and she felt weak. Something warm and wet dripped down the back of her neck and a throbbing pain soon followed. Yet she kept up the mask. Try to ignore the pain, she reminded herself.

But when she took a step to follow everyone else, she wobbled, and her legs almost gave out from under her.

"Hey, are you okay?" Steve asked, noticing her state.

"Peachy," she lied with a grin, reaching back one hand to touch the back of her neck. Although her mask kept up the facade, it was easier to see she was in pain from her eyes. Those, she hadn't mastered yet. When she retrieved her hand, her eyes widened for a split second, and she almost gasped. It was crimson red with blood.

Before Steve could grab her hand, she swiped it away, hiding it behind her back. If they found out about her injury, they'd be sure of what they already probably thought of her. They'd think she was too young or not ready. They'd think she was weak. And weak was something her pride wouldn't allowed them to think her to be.

"I'm fine," she stated in that overly polite tone. She untied her hair, making it cover the wound on the back of her neck. After all, it's not like anyone would notice blood through her long red hair. It was only six hours until they got back home. She could make six hours.

"Are you sure?" Steve inquired, still trying to get a look at her hand.

"I'm fine, Spangles," she scoffed, playfully rolling her eyes. "I told you before, I don't do pity. I'll get it checked out later when we make it back to the Helicarrier. Our mission was to bring Loki into custody."

"Yes, but he's caught now. Your health is important too," pointed out Steve. Melody kept taking her hand away every time he went to try and take a look at it.

"Loki is more important than me," replied Melody, walking back onto the jet on unsteady legs. The world continued twirling with every step she took, but she refused to look weak in front of everyone. Her father wouldn't have let a small thing like an injury stop him, and neither would she. "It's only six hours. Five in the least. I can make it."

"It can't be too far from the nearest hospital" Steve tried as he followed her, ready to help her if she fell. "It's obvious you're hurt."

"And I'm telling you, it's not so bad that it can't wait," shot back Melody, laying herself across two seats to keep her head as still as possible. She tried to focus on Steve, but he seemed to be moving around a lot. "It's not like it's so bad I'm gonna die on the way there. I can make a few hours." She said that last sentence with a tone of finality as she jutted out her chin defiantly and crossed her arms over her chest.

"You know," Tony commented, appearing before them, "I'm starting to see the resemblance between you and Andrei. You're both too stubborn for your own good."

Turning her gaze towards him, Melody narrowed her eyes and growled lowly at him. If looks could kill, he'd be buried six feet under already.

"Only thirteen and she's already mastered that look," he observed jokingly.

"I'll be fine," she shrugged, momentarily wincing at the pain that followed the small movement. Maybe if she kept repeating it, she'd start believing it.


	5. Chapter 5

"This is completely insane," said Steve, the jet taking off as he watched Melody. Her symptoms had gotten worse over the past few minutes, the world swirling around her, but she refused to admit hope bad it really was. She didn't know how bad the bleeding wound on the back of her skull was, and from the effects she was feeling, she feared that it was pretty bad indeed. "She's thirteen, for God's sake. A _kid_. She shouldn't have been out there in the first place."

Well, that basically shut her up from saying anything. She wasn't going to prove them right. The pounding in her head may be killing her, and she might've felt like she was going to toss up her last meal if she moved around too much, but she'd be alright and get help once they were back.

Six hours, she reminded herself. She could make it six hours. It would be six hours filled with a lot of pain for her, it course.

But she didn't want to seem weak in front of everyone else and have them all babying her like a little kid.

"I'll make it," Melody snapped, folding her arms over her chest, careful to hide the one still covered in dry blood. "You act like I'm about to die."

Mentioning the mere possibility to him made Steve flinch. "How can you be so sure about that?" he demanded, an angry tone to his voice. She rolled her eyes, and he could feel her growing cold toward him. His expression softened.

"I'll. Be. Fine," she huffed. "I don't want your pity. Six hours, okay? It's just six hours." Her eyes glanced over to Loki, who watched them all intently without saying anything.

"You keep saying that, but at the very least , you've got a concussion," retorted Tony, crossing his arms over his chest.

But Melody rolled her eyes and looked away. Her clean hand reaching up to the rose quartz around her neck. Why is it everyone ignored her when she wanted them to pay attention, but no one would leave her alone when she wished they would? People always have to give their input whenever she didn't ask for it, and never did when she needed it. Were they ever going to learn to stay out of her business? It wouldn't matter as much if they didn't always treat her like she was five.

 _"How'd the mission go?"_ asked Fury's voice over the comms in their earpieces.

"We've captured Loki," replied Natasha, sparing a glance at Melody before continuing to brief the director. "Carter's down. She might need medical attention the moment we arrive."

"Or everyone's just overreacting," Melody stated breezily. "Trust me, I'm fine. I took a hit, but give me a few minutes, and I'll be alright."

There was a long pause from Fury's side. There was nothing to worry about, right? It was probably just a concussion. With a bit of blood. He knew she hated being coddled, and that was the precise reason she'd made it this far. Having to struggle and fight to keep up with everyone made her more determined. And that determination was the only thing keeping her from falling unconscious though she herself felt her energy slip away.

 _"I'll have her checked out when you land."_

Melody breathed a sigh of relief. He was the one person she could count on to not overreact to a situation she got herself in just because she was younger than everyone else while at the same time, showing he cared. His emotions were well hidden, but she'd always been able to read the faintest hints of how a person was feeling like she could read a book. Sure, the most she'd get is a lecture from Phil about how risky it was to put off immediate medical care for such a serious injury, but that was it.

"Thanks," Steve said before he stood up, looking over at Tony as he stood behind Natasha, watching her fly the jet.

"Is he saying anything?"

"Not a word," Natasha said.

 _"Just get him here. We're low on time."_

"I don't like it," Steve stated, approaching Tony.

"What? The fact that he's given up so easily?" asked Tony in a hushed tone, glancing at Loki.

"No, I don't remember it being this easy. This guy can fight," Steve retorted, following Tony's gaze.

"But still, you are pretty spry for an older fellow," Tony stated, causing Melody to glance towards the two men. "What's your thing, Pilates?"

"What?" Steve asked, confused.

"It's like calisthenics. You might have missed a couple of things, you know, doing time as a Capsicle." This time, something sharp hit him in the back of the head. "Ow!" He turned to see Melody had actually done what she threatened to do since they'd met and thrown one of her white high-heeled boots at his head. Even with her impaired vision, her aim was perfect.

"I warned you what would happen if you didn't learn to play nice with other kids," she shrugged, glaring a hole into his forehead. "Keep it up and I'll bedazzle that helmet of yours in your sleep."

"Oh, so I'm wrong?" he mockingly asked.

"Fury didn't tell me he was calling you in," Steve said flatly.

"Yeah, there's a lot of things Fury doesn't tell you," Tony said.

"Don't take it personally. Fury doesn't tell any of us a lot of things," Melody stated, tempted to throw the other heel at Tony. If looks could kill, from the one she was sending him, he'd be buried 600 feet under. "And don't mind Tin Man either. This is just the way he is. It's better to ignore him." Right after those words left her mouth, the sound of thunder rumbled through the ship, lightning flashing in the sky.

Melody tensed slightly while Natasha muttered, "Where is this coming from?" She glanced over to Loki who seemed just as unsettled at the sudden noise. Melody eyed him curiously as his eyes darted all around, almost like he was searching for something.

"What's the matter? Scared of a little lightning?" Steve questioned in a tight voice, he and Tony noticing Loki's face as well.

"I'm not overly fond of what follows," Loki admitted, his gaze wary. Melody furrowed her brow in confusion. Her mind rapidly ran through everything she knew about Norse mythology when the entire jet shook, nearly sending her sprawling on the floor.

It sounded like someone had landed on the jet itself, making Melody's heart beat faster, adrenaline beginning to rush through her veins. The pain dulled and became almost bearable.

She sat upright and looked at Tony and Steve. "That's not good."

"Stay down," ordered Steve, pointing a finger at her. The redhead glowered at him and crossed her arms over her chest but laid back down.

Suddenly, the jet jerked again, and Steve ran to grab his shield. The look he gave her silently told her to stay out of whatever fight was coming up. Melody nodded, showing she understood. But that didn't mean she'd listen. Rapidly, her mind ran through those Norse mythology facts again. Why would Loki be afraid of thunder?

Steve turned to face Stark, whose helmet was back on. He had opened the doors and was walking towards the exit.

"What are you doing?!" Steve demanded. A moment later, a man landed on the open platform of the jet, a red cape swaying behind him in the wind, long blond hair coming down to his shoulders. He appeared serious and determined as he stared straight at Loki, walking inside the jet. All in all, it appeared very dramatic.

The pieces clicked together in Melody's mind, putting two and two together. Thor, God of thunder and lightning. If she remembered correctly, there was a file on him from something that had happened in Mexico. Two Norse gods. Wow.

Tony made a move to blast him, but Thor used his hammer to punch Tony away from him. He flew across the jet, bumping against Steve. Despite all that was happening, Melody couldn't help the small, amazed smile on her lips.

"Whoa," she grinned, sitting back up again, small waves of nausea hitting her. At least it isn't as bad as last time, she thought. Thor grabbed Loki by the collar and flew out of the jet with his brother, taking away the man they'd fought so hard to capture. "Here we go again," she sighed to herself, grin fading.

"And now there's that guy," Tony muttered with a sigh, both he and Steve standing up.

"Another Asgardian?" questioned Natasha. Melody nodded, her grin returning.

"Thor!" she exclaimed excitedly. The agent's face instantly turned into one of understanding.

"Think the guys a friendly?" Steve inquired, earning another nod and smile from her.

"He was a year ago."

"It doesn't matter," Tony pointed out, waking past Melody. "If he frees Loki or kills him, the Tesseract's lost."

"Stark, we need a plan of attack!" Steve called out to him urgently. Melody almost snorted. Like that was going to stop Tony.

Sure enough, the man replied shortly, "I have a plan." He glanced back at Steve and Melody one last time. "Attack."

With that, Tony jumped out of the jet, flying after Thor and Loki as fast as his suit could take him. Steve eyed Melody once, sighing in frustration at Tony's ignorance before grabbing a parachute.

Natasha looked back and called out, "I'd sit this one out, Cap."

"I don't see how I can," he retorted shortly.

"These aren't your average enemies," Natasha warned. "These guys come from legends. They're basically gods."

"There's only one God, ma'am," Steve said. "And I'm pretty sure he doesn't dress like that."

At those words, Melody looked up to grin, "You superheroes are insane. Just because they're not gods doesn't mean they're not powerful entities."

"Well, it's like you said," he stated. "Loki's our mission." With that said, Steve jumped out, shield in hands and parachute on his back.

Melody rolled her eyes and huffed. "Men." Standing up on shaky legs, the world swirling around her, she took a deep breath and grabbed onto the walls for support. "Turn around," she said, a bit breathlessly as she tried to focus, walking towards Natasha. She held onto the back of her seat for support and blinked rapidly.

"Already two steps ahead of you," stated Natasha, closing the platform in the back of the jet while she turned the jet around, following the signal of Tony's Iron Man suit to where the two were supposed to be. "You okay?"

Melody stared at the back of Natasha's head. All the pain in her body had dulled considerably, but it was still there. She could feel the bruise forming on her wrist from where Loki had grabbed her, and her head still throbbed. The only reason she felt fine enough to even try to do this was probably because of the adrenaline in her veins. For a moment, she considered how bad a hit to the back of the skull could be if untreated, then shook the thought out. Since when did she have time to worry about that?

"Yeah..." she breathed out, blinking get eyes rapidly in an attempt to make the world stop spinning.

Steve, Tony, and Thor weren't far away, and when the girls found where they were, they also found destruction. Trees had fallen all around the three men, and they forced a circle around them as the heroes stood facing each other, seemingly only talking. Briefly, Melody wondered what battle had occurred to create this much damage while Natasha landed the jet nearby them.

Thor was the first to enter with Loki in tow, handcuffs placed on the trickster's hands. He was seated in the same place as before while Steve and Tony made their way inside.

"Now that we've settled that, shall we return to base?" Natasha suggested, not really waiting for an answer, closing the platform. She took off the jet before anyone could even bother to answer.

"Could someone pass me my shoe?" asked Melody, although judging by the fact that she couldn't see it on the floor, it most likely had fallen off the jet amidst all the commotion. Instead she shrugged, "On second thought, never mind."

The adrenaline was starting to fade again, and she began to feel weak, the pain returning. Just as quickly, she put up get mask, making it seem like everything was fine. "I see Spangles and Tin Man have made a new friend," she chuckled, grinning as she made her way back to her seat, grasping onto the walls to keep her balance. "Thor...right?"

"Yes, little one," said Thor, nodding.

"Don't call me that."

"Apologies then, my lady," he amended. Melody's bell-like peals of laughter rang out.

"Not that either. I'm no lady," she giggled, shaking her head.

"Maybe not," said Steve quietly. Melody glanced at him, and her mask briefly faltered before returning when she saw the worried look on his face. "But I do remember you being hurt."

"It's nothing." Instinctively, Melody reached for the back of her head, touching the spot where blood was still oozing out. "I'm fine."

Tony lifted up the helmet of his suit, looking at her in concern while Thor glanced between the three, more curious than confused. Steve walked over to her, and she hid her bloody hand behind her back.

Wrong move.

Steve grabbed her hand, and she winced as he brought it up to his eye to inspect it. He lifted up her hair from the back of her neck, and he hissed when he saw the wound. Guess it really was worse than she originally thought. But she kept up the mask, and though the action brought her more pain, she pulled her hair away, letting it fall back over the wound.

"It's nothing," she repeated, finally making her way to her seat. "I'm fine, alright?"

"You keep saying that, but you've damaged your skull in some way." This time, his voice was stern, saying that she wasn't getting out of this one this time. Yet she found a loophole.

"We've only got a bit longer until we reach the base," she said in that formal, curt tone, her scent slightly thicker. Her eyes turned cold as she laid down, keeping her head still to ease the pain. "I'd appreciate if I spent the rest of it without listening to you lecture me like you're my father. He's been gone for a long time, and I really don't need you to pretend to be him right now."

Tony bit his lip and looked out the window, feeling the chill sent Cap's way in those words. He'd make a comment about it, but he didn't feel like getting another high heel to the face.

Meanwhile, Steve looked like he'd been slapped. Then, concern in his eyes, he walked over to Tony, folding his arms across his chest.

* * *

There was no medical team waiting outside when the team stepped out of the jet, something Melody was thankful for. Who was waiting there made her weigh the option of going back inside and bleeding to death.

Beside Fury awaited a woman with straight blonde hair falling over her shoulders, her face void of emotion, the only hint of it being her sea-green eyes that looked Melody over almost critically. The way she stood was rigid, cold, and formal. The look she sent the rest of the team as she walked forward and wrapped an arm around Melody's back made the temperature seem to drop a few degrees.

"Relax. She'll be back before Stark," she stated flatly before guiding Melody away from the bridge. She took most of Melody's weight, walking her towards her office below.

Even her medical office was cold and formal. If it weren't for the few items scattered on the table, you would've believed no one was here at all. The walls were a plain white and the floor was pristine. A chair sat in the far corner, a desk and a laptop in the other. There was a sink near the front of the room with running water. No decorations or windows except for the tiny one at the top of the door so she could see whatever happened outside. All noise was isolated, and it felt like there was no one around but her and the woman.

That was part of the reason why she hated absolute silence. Being alone in this room during the very few times she stayed with a relative over the holidays had always made her skin crawl with invisible beetles. In fact, the room itself felt like a prison cell. Over the past seven years, her overall impression of the place stayed the same: cold, oppressive, suffocating. If the effect wasn't already bad enough in that office, it was ten times worse whenever she went to her aunt's house.

Melody swallowed as the door closed, and she was seated in the chair, hissing at the slight movement of her neck. The blonde woman eyed her up and down, lifting up her long scarlet hair to get a better view of the wound before dropping it, not being gentle in doing so, getting another hiss of pain from the redhead.

"You really should start being more careful," the woman said absentmindedly, grabbing a white rag from the table. She went over to the sink and turned on the faucet, letting the water wash over the rag. "There's a limit to the things I can fix with some water and a first-aid kit."

"Really?" Melody mumbled. "There's a limit to the tons you can fix or the amount of times you're willing to keep doing this?"

"Watch your mouth, young lady," the woman stated coldly, turning her head to look at her with eyes devoid of any warmth. "With a blow like that, you're lucky you're still awake."

"Lucky?" A small scoff left Melody's lips as the two stared each other down. "That's not exactly a word I'd use to describe my life."

"It's luckier than many others," the woman retorted without missing a beat, turning off the sink. Water dripping from the rag, she stepped forward and placed it on the back of Melody's neck. She hissed, gritting her teeth before a strange, almost cold, sensation appeared around the wound at the back of her skull.

Through the curtain of blonde hair surrounding the woman's face, Melody could see a look of concentration, but it was gone around the same time as the pain faded away. The world stopped turning, and she felt almost completely fine beside the bruise on her wrist that sent pain through her hand whenever pressure was put against it. But she didn't want to ask and give the woman another reason to tell her that she gave Melody more than she deserved while Melody only have her nothing but problems in return.

"Better?" the woman demanded, taking away the rag. She rung it out in the sink, and Melody watched her through narrowed eyes. Yeah, let's just say their relationship wasn't the best. If they didn't share the last name, you'd never guess that they were family.

"Yes, Aunt Caroline," replied Melody in a monotone voice. Her aunt was the one person she had to be sure to cover up her feelings like she'd taught her to. She set up expectations, and expected her to follow through every time, but never in Melody's whole life had she ever said a kind word about her when she met them. Only, "Do better next time," or, "I expect more from you." Her aunt was harder, harsher and colder than all of her instructors combined.

After her father died, she'd always felt like her aunt resented her, that she wished it had been her instead of her father that died. No matter what she did right, her aunt's expectations were higher still. Part of her motivation was borne out of pure spite towards her aunt.

Without another word, Melody stood and walked over to the door. She fought the urge to look back at her aunt. Last year, she got fed up trying to win her approval and swore she'd stop hurting herself like this. But out of the corner of her eye, she watched her aunt sit down at her laptop, typing out a report without even an upward glance.

While she didn't like being pitied by strangers, she found herself wishing that her aunt would at least show a hint of concern. Then Melody shook her head, pushed the door open, and left the room, shutting the door behind her.

She gave a small huff before walking to her room, sweeping a stand of hair out of her eye. "Who needs family anyway?" she whispered to herself once she closed the door the minute she entered her room. She leaned against it, forcing a small smile as she grasped the rose quartz hanging from her neck. "All I need is you back, Papa." Then she took a deep breath, blinked away the tears pricking the corners of her eyes, let go of the necklace, and pulled herself together.

"I'll be fine," she said, determination in her tone as she fixed her hair into a braid. She was fine. She was always fine.


	6. Chapter 6

Staring at the mirror before her, Melody inspected herself. She was going to have to change into another outfit judging from the blood at the top of her back. Since her shirt was white, it was stained red. Finishing up the braid, she flipped it over her shoulder and walked over to a door leading to a very small bathroom. She grabbed a pile of clothes and went in, changing into a blue tank top and black leggings. As she glanced at the mirror hanging above the sink, her gaze lingered on her reflection. She lifted up her braid, resting it on her shoulder before turning around to inspect her neck.

Thanks to her aunt, there wasn't any kind of open wound, though at second glance, she could see a white mark at the bottom of her hairline. Melody furrowed her eyebrows and inspected it closer, leaning towards the mirror. Apparently her aunt had decided not to heal the extremely long and thick scar. Whatever she'd done to herself when she fell had left quite a bad wound. No wonder Steve and Tony were worried. Hopefully, they wouldn't ask any questions as to why she was now alright.

Her world had stopped spinning and the concussion she had was gone, the pounding gone from her head. If she didn't know about her aunt's abilities, she herself would be freaked out at how rapidly she'd fixed up the injury. All it had taken was a few seconds and some water.

She had been in other accidents earlier in her life, yet her aunt had been able to heal her, allowing her to recover quickly. The only thing her aunt couldn't heal were injuries where there was just too much damage to fix. After all, Melody's uncle, Balthazar (his real name was Lucas, but he liked his middle name better), her father's brother, had been in an accident that was impossible to recover from. Aunt Caroline had tried many times in the past, but could never fix it like she'd done for so many others.

Melody actually liked Balthazar, mostly because he wasn't as strict, but at the same time, blunt, unafraid to tell her what she was doing wrong or show her mercy due to her age. He knew she responded best to force, though he still remembered that she was his niece, and at her age, there was a limit to the things she could do. He just reminded her that it was up to her whether or not she wanted to push those limits.

Her insides boiled when she recalled that her aunt's _powers_ hadn't deemed themselves able to help him when during a mission, long before Melody was born, Balthazar had sustained an injury that rendered him paraplegic. That was possibly the one thing she and her Aunt Caroline had in common. The anger that she had the abilities to control water and use it to heal others, but she hasn't been able to heal her older brother, crushing any dreams of his to live a normal life, or her younger sister, Melody's other aunt Terra, when a huge metal bar had pierced a hole above her right hipbone, making her dreams of ever becoming a mother impossible. Maybe that was the curse that came along with the gift: she could heal others, but not the ones when it mattered most.

Yes, her family had a tragic history. Often enough times, Melody wondered if they were cursed. It almost made her want to forgive her Aunt Caroline, but they were just too different and too...resentful of each other to live under the same roof. She'd tried to spend Christmas with her last year. She hadn't even last the day before boarding the next bus back to New York to call Phil and ask if she could spend the holiday with him.

Yet a part of her felt sorry for her aunt. With all she'd gone through, it was no wonder she never smiled.

Breaking out of her thoughts, Melody let down her braid. She walked out of the bathroom and grabbed her swords before deciding to leave them on the door. She walked out and locked the door behind her. With swift steps, she rushed to the bridge, checking her eyes briefly along the way to make sure there were no tears anymore.

She smiled and waved when her eyes caught Steve and Natasha sitting around the large, glass table that she'd first seen during her first time on the bridge. Bruce stood beside them, watching something on a screen before Steve while Thor stood further away, simply listening with his back turned towards them. Melody walked over to besides Bruce, watching recordings from a video camera inside of the room Loki was held. Fury was speaking to Loki and their words resonated through the bridge; the place nearly empty as it was now the middle of the night.

 _"Ant,"_ Fury said on the screen, gesturing to Loki. _"Boot."_ Fury turned to the consoles before him, making Loki chuckle lightly. Melody quickly decided that she didn't like it when Loki was laughing. He was trapped, and he didn't seem worried in the slightest. He must've had some trick up his sleeve. With a quick glance around, she decided not to share this theory. It's not like anyone would've listened to her.

 _"It's an impressive cage,"_ smirked Loki from behind the cell's glass wall. _"Not built, I think, for me."_

"Well, aren't you observant," muttered Melody under her breath, her eyes drifting to Bruce as he shifted uncomfortably. She knew that the cage was originally made for the Hulk, that Fury would've taken safety precautions just in case Bruce lost control of his temper. It did sadden her, though, to know that they had trusted him so little that they'd built a cage for him, especially when the mere thought of knowing that you weren't fully trusted would make it difficult to keep calm all the time. Or at least, that's how Melody would've felt if it were her they'd built the cage for.

 _"Built for something a lot stronger than you,"_ Fury replied in the video.

 _"Oh, I've heard. A mindless who makes play he is still a man,"_ said Loki, turning towards the camera. It almost appeared as if he were looking straight at Bruce.

The scientist nodded his head slightly, most likely taking offence to what Loki said about him. Melody narrowed her eyes and placed a hand on his arm to reassure him. He gave her a questioning look, but she just smiled and looked on straight ahead at the video.

 _"How despair are you too call on such lost creatures to defend yourselves?"_ Loki's question angered even Melody as her eyes narrowed. Underneath her hand, she felt Bruce tense.

 _"How_ _desperate am I?"_ Fury repeated. _"You threaten my world with war, you steal a force you can't hope to control, you talk about peace and you kill 'cause it's fun. You have made me very desperate. You might not be glad that you did."_

 _"It burns you to have come so close,"_ said Loki as Fury stepped closer to the cell doors. _"To have the Tesseract, to have power, unlimited power...And for what? A warm light for all mankind?"_

Melody's anger dissolved into confusion as she focused on what his words could mean. From beside her, Bruce eyed the screen with the same suspicion she felt towards Loki. Something was off. Something was wrong. They missed something and she knew it. But what was it? What was that one piece of the puzzle she was missing.

Her unconscious mind probably knew the answer from the bits and pieces she heard around her. That was the one perk of being ignored constantly. No one realized you were ever listening. But she still couldn't put the pieces together. She needed more variables to figure out the equation.

 _"And then to be reminded of what real power is,"_ Loki finished, causing Fury to roll his eyes as he turned away from the god of mischief.

 _"Well, let me know if 'real power' wants a magazine or something."_ With that said, Fury made his way towards the exit and the video footage ended, almost everyone's eyes on Bruce.

"He really grows on you, doesn't he?" he said dryly, his arms crossed over his chest. Melody released his arm and leaned her against the glass table, staring at the table. Loki's presence on the Helicarrier made her uneasy, but like she wasn't willing to say it out loud. He had to be planning something.

"I always hated puzzles," she grumbled under her breath.

"Loki's gonna drag this out," stated Steve, looking over at Thor who still hadn't turned back to the rest of the team. "So...Thor, what's his play?"

All eyes were now on the Norse god of thunder, and after a moment, he slowly turned toward the team, his eyes first resting on Steve before glancing momentarily at Melody who preferred to keep standing, resting her arms on the back of an empty chair next to Natasha, propping her head up with one hand.

"He has an army called the Chitauri," Thor answered. "They're not of Asgard nor any world known. He means to lead them against your people. They will win him the earth, in return, I suspect, for the Tesseract."

"An army...from outer space." From Steve, it came out more as a statement rather than a question, trying to get it to register. Melody couldn't blame him. It was almost impossible to believe. Especially when he was just thawed out from being in a block of ice for seventy years. Though her eyed flitted to him for a split second, she didn't dare show she was there for him.

"So he's building another portal," Bruce stated, taking off his glasses as he earned the attention of the room once again. From the corner of her eye, Melody caught Maria Hill coming in to stand in a corner, listening to the conversation. "That's what he needs Erik Selvig for."

"Selvig?" asked Thor.

"He's an astrophysicist," enlightened Bruce. Melody smirked and stiffled a laugh. He actually thought Thor hadn't met the scientist, although she knew he had from the files she'd read on the case about the last time Thor came to earth.

"He's a friend," Thor recalled.

"Loki has him under some kind of spell along with one of ours," Natasha explained, glancing over at Melody who exchanged a look with her before focusing back on Thor and the conversation at hand.

"I want to know why Loki let us take him," wondered Steve. "He's not leading an army from here."

"No duh there," Melody agreed, shrugging her shoulders. "But with Loki, he's a trickster, and I just _know_ that the fact alone that he _let_ us take him, there _has_ to be something we're not seeing that he does."

"I don't think we should be focusing on Loki," dismissed Bruce, shaking his head. "That guy's brain is a bag full of cats. You could smell the crazy on him."

"I just don't think we should be underestimating-"

Melody was cut off by Thor, who was watching Bruce through narrowed eyes as he took a step forward. "Have care how you speak," he warned. "Loki's beyond reason but he is of Asgard, and my brother."

"He killed eighty people in two days," said Natasha flatly.

"He's adopted," Thor admitted with a defeated look. Melody raised an eyebrow but didn't question it

"I think it's about the mechanics," suggested Bruce, right as Tony Stark himself entered, followed by Coulson and a few other agents standing by the door. "Iridium. What do they need with it?"

"What Clint and the others stole from Germany, right?" Melody asked, tilting her head to one side.

"It's a stabilizing agent," said Tony loudly, letting everyone know he was in the room. "It means the portal won't collapse on itself like it did at S.H.I.E.L.D."

As Tony rounded the table, he passed by Thor on his way towards the bridge's monitor where Fury normally stood to oversee everything happening on the Helicarrier. Since he wasn't there at the moment, the spot was empty. Despite Melody's thoughts of whatever sarcastic comment Tony was about to say, he only patted Thor's arm, earning a confused look from the Asgardian himself.

"No hard feelings, Point Break. You have a mean swing," assured Tony, referring to the fight that had occurred between the two before Steve managed to interfere the battle on their way back to America. "Also means the portal can open as wide and stay open as long as Loki wants."

At this point, Tony stood by the monitors on Fury's usual spot, looking down at the people working on the bridge. He threw out a few unnecessary orders that referred to sailing, causing everyone on the bridge to look at him. Tony ignored them all, pointing a finger at the far off end of the room.

"That man's playing Galaga!" Tony explained, the entire bridge silent. "He thought we wouldn't notice, but we did." He covered one eye with his hand, looking at all the monitors with only one eye before turning back to the team. "How does Fury even see these?"

Melody couldn't help giggling quietly, despite this being a serious meeting. Of course, this was just the way he was all the time and this meeting was about the safety of the world, but it was nice to have a laugh now and then. Sure, Tony could at least pretend to worry about the world being in danger, but that just wouldn't be him. Was he always like this during meetings?

Yep.

"He turns," Hill replied, rolling her eyes as he started looking through the different monitors.

"Sounds exhausting," he murmured. "The rest of the raw materials, Barton can get his hands on pretty easily. Only major component he needs is a power source, high energy density. Something to kick start the cube."

"What power sources are we talking about here?" inquired Melody.

"Well...he'd have to heat the cube to a hundred and twelve million Kelvin just to break through the Colom barrier," Bruce said, clearing up, even if by a bit, some of the confusion Melody had as science and chemistry was something she somewhat understood.

"Unless Selvig figures out how to-" Tony was cut off.

"How to stabilize the quantum tunnel effect!" Melody finished excitedly, looking over at him as he walked towards Bruce.

"That's...actually correct," Bruce said, sounding mildly surprised. Most people would be lost at this point, much less a child her age. "And if he can do that, he could attain heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet."

"And that is one thing we do n _ot_ need happening," snorted Melody, shaking her head slightly.

"Finally I've found people who speak English," Tony proclaimed, earning a baffled look from Steve and a bright grin from Melody.

"It's good to meet you, Dr. Banner," Tony said, shaking Bruce's hand, finally sounding formal and serous. "Your work on anti-electronic collisions is unparalleled and I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous, green rage monster."

Melody slapped one hand over her mouth, torn between laughing and tossing her shoe at Tony for the words coming out of his mouth. It was impossible to think that Tony could ever be formal and serious for longer than a few seconds in a row.

The room was silent until Bruce said quietly, "...Thanks."

"Dr. Banner is only here to track the cube," Fury said as he walked inside of the room, hearing Tony's words. "I was hoping you might join in."

"I'd start with that stick of his," Steve said. "It may be magical but it works an awful lot like a H.Y.D.R.A. weapon. _"_

_H.Y.D.R.A_.

"I don't know about that, but it is powered by the cube," replied Fury.

 _Hail_ _H.Y.D.R.A_.

Melody blinked a couple of times, the words seeming somehow...familiar. A memory of a man with completely black eyes, no white or iris, only darkness, flashed in her mind for a split second. The moment Steve had said those words, she'd recognized them. On the night it had happened, she hadn't really thought about it. She knew H.Y.D.R.A. was what Captain America and his friends had fought against during WWII, but she hadn't expected to hear that word for a long time.

"And I'd like to know how Loki used it to turn two of my sharpest men into his personal flying monkeys," stated Fury, breaking Melody out of her thoughts as she focused back on the conversation at hand.

"Monkeys?" Thor furrowed his brow in confusion, turning towards the director. "I do not understand."

"I do!" Steve exclaimed, pointing his finger at Thor. For someone so old, he suddenly sounded rather young. He was proud he finally understood something in the 21st century.  
His comment made a smile spread across Melody's lips, and she giggled quietly as he looked over at her, confused at everyone's silence. "I understood that reference."

Everyone ignored him and went back to the conversation. Melody laughed at his confused look before smirking, "It's all right Spangles. _I'm_ proud you've finally got a reference. Quite a movie, wasn't it? The Wizard of Oz?"

Steve actually smiled back. "Yeah."

"Shall we play, Doctor?" Tony asked, turning to Bruce.

"This way," he said as the two left the bridge.

"The rest of you, get some rest," ordered Fury, the doors choosing behind Tony and Bruce. "The moment they find something on the Tesseract, I'll be sure to inform you all."

And with that, the meeting was over and Melody stood up along with the others as they all left the room. Thor looked around himself in confusion before Natasha asked him to come and eat something with her, which made the Asgardian smile widely. Apparently he'd gained quite an appetite after traveling from world to world. Melody bit her lip and followed after Steve to apologize for her reaction towards his kindness on the jet.

Once she caught up to him, they walked in an awkward silence through the hallways towards their own rooms. Oh how Melody hated silence. She pursed her lips before breaking it. "I'm sorry for being a little...snippy on the jet," she apologized, starting to speak a mile a minute as she always did when nervous. It seemed like she didn't stop to breathe the entire time. "I really didn't mean it, and it was really, really, really rude, especially when you just being nice, but I just got frustrated. Everyone keeps on treating me like I'm five and it gets super annoying, and after all that happened today, I just-"

"Whoa!" Steve held out his hands, making her stop abruptly. "Breathe. Try again."

Melody took a deep breath and loudly exhaled before repeating her apology. "I'm sorry if I was a little rude back on the jet," she said slowly, still sounding a bit winded from her previous attempt at apologizing.

"It's fine," Steve sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "What happened to your neck? I thought you were injured."

"I was, but the nurse patched me up," Melody grinned, lifting up her braid and turning her head for him to see the scar. "See?"

Still, Steve winced at the huge scar that now marred her neck, his thoughts still filled with guilt for letting a kid like her get so badly hurt in the first place. "How?"

"My aunt's a miracle worker," Melody shrugged with a small smile, letting her scarlet-colored braid fall back over her neck. "She can fix almost anything."

"Your...aunt?"

"Yep. Caroline Carter," she said, her smile still visible but no longer reaching her eyes. "She was born special, just like everyone else in my family. That's how she states it. I, of course, was born ordinary." She started skipping and twirling on the tiles as they continued on their way down the hall. "She says that unlike my father, I wasn't born special. Now, I know that compared to you, I'm not important or special, but I'll be damned if I ever let that stop me before."

Steve faltered in his steps for a moment, watching her. "Of course you're important," he said quietly. "I just think you're a bit young for this. This is a cold business, and a kid like you has too much of a heart for that."

"I'll be fine," scoffed Melody, keeping her eyes on her feet as she counted her steps. "I have no clue how Fury thinks we can sleep under circumstances like this."

If he sensed the sudden change in subject, he didn't mention it. "Me neither," sighed Steve. "Especially with Loki on the Helicarrier. There's something off about this." Melody bit her lip and looked at him.

"I think so, too," she said. "He's a trickster, a powerful entity, so I think he's got something up his sleeve that we're not seeing yet! I mean, why else would he just suddenly decide to surrender?"

"Well, that's true," agreed Steve, immediately catching onto what she was hinting at. "He had to have some kind of plan...something he wants on the Helicarrier."

"I know that," said Melody, taking out a stick of bubblegum to chew as she thought about it. "But no one would've listened to me. As far as they're concerned, as long as Loki's in the cage, he can't get out and we should be safe. Even if he does want something. While this might just be my anxiety talking but we're talking about the Norse god of mischief. It's dangerous to let our guard down, especially when he's in our custody." While she stuck the bubblegum in her mouth and started chewing, she glanced back at Steve. He seemed in deep thought. Melody's eyebrows rose. "Wow, you're actually...listening to me."

"Yeah, why?" he murmured.

"Most people stop paying attention to the ramblings of a little girl," she chuckled wryly. "Last time something like this was going on, no one would listen to me. They just said I was being paranoid and nothing bad was going to happen."

"Well, you're right, aren't you?" Steve asked, turning his head towards her. "There's just something about this. And not just the situation in general, but about S. .L.D. itself."

"About...S.H.I.E.L.D.," Melody repeated, furrowing her brow as they stopped a few feet away from her door.

"You work for them, don't you?" he asked.

"Not yet," she replied. "I'm still in training. I practically have been raised by S. .L.D., though. My aunt trains me when we're both free, but our relationship is a little..." She trailed off, trying to find the right word. "Rocky," she finished with a clenched smile.

"Sorry about that," Steve said, earning a shrug as the redheaded Russian waved it off like a pesky fly. "You apparently don't have much family, so maybe you should try to fix up the relationship with the family you already have."

"If you knew my family, you wouldn't say that," Melody snorted in that cold, overly formal and polite tone that Steve was starting to get meant that he was striking a nerve. "So do me a favor and focus more on the matter at hand. What do you mean, something's off about S.H.I.E.L.D.?" she demanded, folding her arms across her chest.

Steve exhaled softly. "I understand they're trying to keep the planet safe...But...I don't know. I suppose I just have some trouble trusting people.

An odd atmosphere filled the hallway they did in as he said those words. His eyes were filled with various emotions: exhaustion, remorse, distress, strained, and overall worry, although there other emotions there that were deeper than any Melody had seen in her life. She knew eyes like that, though not so deep. She'd seen eyes like that when a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent came back from a mission gone wrong or after being captured and enduring torture. Or both. They were the eyes of a broken or war-weary soldier. A soldier who was taken from one war only to be tossed into another again and again.

Melody thought there was no more painful sight than eyes like that. Balthazar had told her once that there worse to her dismay. When she was little, he'd told her that if you ever want to know how a person truly feels, look at their eyes. _Oh, the stories eyes can tell. If you see such emotion, they still feel something,_ her uncle had said. _What's worse is when you look into someone's eyes, and see nothing in them. No pain, no emotion, just a blank, faraway stare, the eyes of a broken man who's become dead inside._

Melody was suddenly filled with the urge to give Steve a blanket, a cup of tea, a teddy bear, .and a box of tissues. This wasn't new, but she thought she shouldn't because she had a feeling that if she didn't like being pitied, he probably didn't either.

"Well, I don't really know anything because I'm just a kid," she shrugged, sounding perfectly innocent though anything, "but...my aunt might know something. I overheard mumbling about a 'Phase 2,' or something like that."

Steve furrowed his brow. "What's that?"

Melody shrugged. "I didn't stick around. I don't like spending more time than I already have to with her. I wasn't supposed to hear it, but when you're a little girl no one pays attention to, you hear things," she smirked before strolling to the door of her room. Telling him something like that could get her in trouble. After all, it was something she wasn't supposed to know about, something she wouldn't dare go around asking questions about.

But, oh, how she loved to spite her aunt. And technically, she wasn't quite loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D., and even if she was, this was her chance to find out something. The feeling he had that there was something Fury was keeping from them as well was something she'd felt for a long time. In few fields, Uncle Nick could be trusted, but Director Fury was an entirely different story.

The mission came first before everything else. That was mostly S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mindset. Sometimes...their methods weren't the nicest. Like Steve had said, this was a cold business. If there was something being kept secret that they should know, Melody wouldn't put it past Fury.

"Oh, by the way," Melody beamed as she opened the door to her room. Steve still looked deep in thought, but he looked up at her voice. "I know it's been seventy years, but you still owe my great-grandmother that dance." With that, she went in her room and closed the door.


End file.
